03/19/2026
Florida's state tree, the cabbage palm (Sabal palmetto) has been abused over the years by unnecessary over-pruning, often called the hurricane cut. Save your money, save your palms, and just say no to palm pruning. Read more here: https://www.plantrealflorida.org/info/your-real-florida-yard/save-our-state-tree-stop-the-sabal-palm-massacre/
Of course, palms are monocots and the fact that they do not produce any real wood means that they are not trees botanically. So, our state tree is not a tree. For more on palms, here’s a link to my “How Palms Work” article: https://greengardeningmatters.blogspot.com/2025/01/floridas-palms-and-how-palms-work.html
And thanks to Jono Miller for the photo.
